Renting in New York City
by nyakattia
Summary: Flatmates, rent, and moving house- Danny and Lindsay style. DL. 10th in the Climb This Mountain Series. For Bo.


_you've begun to feel like home/ whats mine is yours to leave or take/ what's mine is yours to make your own_  
The Fray, _Look After You_

The November rain, picked up by a gust of wind that whipped around the city buildings, splattered against the window pane. Inside, the DVD had finished playing and the credits were slowly scrolling up the screen. It was only mid afternoon, but the light filtering through the dense rainclouds outside was dim.

After a few moments, Danny picked up the remote from where it lay on the floor next to the couch and flicked the TV off. As he did so, Lindsay, lying with her head on his lap, shifted and opened her eyes, blinking at him.

Then she smiled, the same smile he saw every morning they woke up together. "Hey."

"Hey. You missed the movie."

"Did I?" She looked over at the blank TV screen. "Was it any good?"

"Nah, bunch of romance crap."

She grinned, raising an eyebrow. "So why didn't you turn it off?"

He felt himself flush as she giggled. "Thought you wanted to watch it, Montana."

"Sure, sure."

She pulled herself up to sit next to him and stretched out her arms. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, playing with the strands of hair she'd recently cut. He liked the new look, a straight bob, thought it looked cute and sassy on her. But sometimes he missed the way he used to be able to tangle up his fingers in her loose curls.

She sank back down beside him, her head coming to rest on his chest. "We have to go to work tomorrow," she said.

"Yep."

A sigh. "I wish we didn't have to."

He smiled. "Yeah but if we didn't go to work who would be there to catch the bad guys?"

"Mac." Looking down, he could just about see the grin on her face.

"Yeah, but then he'd never leave the lab."

She chuckled a little. "I'm hungry," she stated, abruptly changing the subject.

"Well then go get somethin' to eat. Mi casa, su casa, Montana, y'know that."

She sighed again then pulled herself upright. "Okay."

She wandered into the kitchen. After a long moment of sitting on the couch alone, he got up and followed her in. She was filling up the kettle at the sink, and looked over her shoulder at him.

"You want some tea?"

"Nah, I'm good, thanks."

He leaned on a counter watching her she moved around the kitchen clad only in one of his baseball jerseys, just long enough to cover her shapely rear. She easily found the stuff she needed, picking out a mug he now thought of as hers and getting the tea from a stash he kept for her.

She looked over at him, grinning as she recognized the look in his eye. "What?"

He shrugged innocently. "Nothin'."

"I know what you're thinking, Messer." Hell, most of the time he only had to look at her to get 'in the mood'. As sideways glance, a quick touch in the middle of the damn layout room and he wanted to take her then and there.

"Oh really, Ms Monroe? And what would that be?" He walked over to her as she turned to face him, backing her up against the conveniently empty counter.

She rolled her eyes at him but as she opened her mouth to speak he crashed his lips down on hers. She welcomed the kiss with a small moan as his tongue plundered her mouth. The taste of her was so familiar it was as if she was the only woman he had ever kissed.

His hands slid down to her thighs but she stopped him with a hand to his chest before he could lift her up onto the counter behind her.

"What about my tea?" she asked, a little breathlessly.

"Make it later," he told her, turning his attention to the wonders of her clavicle and swiping his tongue along it.

"In that case," she paused as he moved back up, taking her mouth again. When they separated, she said only one word.

"Bedroom."

l--

Afterwards they lay cuddled together on his bed, the light outside slowly getting darker as day turned into evening.

"By the way," he said, turning over on his side to face her, their heads resting on the same pillow, "sorry about yesterday. With Jess."

She laughed. "She'll get over it."

He certainly hoped so. The young nurse had already bitched at him twice for waking her up in the middle of the night when his pager went off. But it had been more than a little embarrassing to have his girlfriend's flatmate walk in when they were on the couch, his hand down Lindsay's pants.

They had promptly decamped to his place for the rest of their weekend off together.

"She doesn't like me."

Lindsay shrugged. "She likes you fine. It just gets a bit crowded in there with me and you, and her and her boyfriend."

"Yeah, what is his name this week?"

Lindsay slapped his chest lightly with the back of her hand. "Behave. Besides shes been with this one for two months nearly. Maybe it will work out."

That was his Montana. Always looking at the bright side. "I'm not holdin' my breath."

She rolled her eyes at him and her reached forward just enough to kiss the tip of her nose which had her grinning at him again. "Well we can't all have your nice large rent controlled apartment. Some of us have to make do."

He searched her eyes for a moment before speaking. "Yeah, but if you moved out you wouldn't have'ta make do."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "But where would I live?"

He shrugged. "I've got room."

She frowned at him. "You serious?"

"Nah, I'm pullin' your leg." He rolled his eyes but smiled at her. "Yeah I'm serious, Lindsay. Move in with me."

She bit her bottom lip, and her could see her turning the idea over in her mind. "Look, we're practically livin' together anyway, and it doesn't make sense to be paying two lots 'a rent when we could split my share. And, like you said, I got lots 'a room, and the place is rent controlled. What more could you want?"

When she continued to frown at him, he spoke again. "'Sides, you know a New Yorker loves ya when he offers to share his space with ya."

Her lips quirked up at that but her eyes stayed serious. "I know Danny. I just gotta... think about it first, okay?"

He tried to brush aside that niggling feeling of disappointment as he kissed her forehead. "S'ok Montana, there's no time limit on this offer. I'm gonna go make dinner."

l--

They studiously avoided the topic while they ate the stir-fry he had whipped up, instead discussing everything from baseball stats, to strange reports on the news, to giggling over a conspiracy to find each and every one of Flack's fugly ties and set them on fire.

After they ate, she drifted over to the window in the kitchen and looked down on the street below.

"What are you doing Montana?" he asked.

"Just thinking," she replied. "This place is closer to work than mine, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"And the park."

He stood behind her, looking out onto the same scene. Streetlights, headlights and fluorescent shop signs illuminated the nighttime pedestrians, some heading for the subway stop just down the block. Other tall city buildings surrounded them, but there was a small section of starless sky visible above.

"Yeah."

"Hmm," she murmured. Then she turned to face him with a bright smile. "Wanna help me do the dishes, Messer?"

He practically had to bite his tongue to keep from questioning her about it, to give her the space to think that she wanted. He forced a smile. "Yeah, sure. You wash, I'll dry."

l--

They washed up together, and got ready for bed together, Lindsay brushing her teeth while he flossed. He kissed her shoulder as he left the bathroom and got into bed, staring up at the ceiling as he thought about what he was gonna do if she turned him down. He had never actually asked a woman to move in with him before, so the whole thing was a first for him.

When she hadn't joined him after a few minutes, he got back out of bed and went looking for her. She was standing in the kitchen staring into the next room, a contemplative look in her eyes. He walked over and wrapped his arms around her from behind, feeling her settle into his embrace as they looked at his darkened apartment together.

"What are you thinking, Montana?" he murmured in her ear.

"Hmm?" she asked, but answered his question before he could repeat himself. "Just figuring out where I'm gonna put my stuff."

He grinned, and turned her around in his arms so he could kiss her. "That a yes Montana?"

She grinned back at him and kissed him just as hard as he had kissed her. "That's a yes, Danny. I'll move in with you."

He swept her off her feet and into his arms, making her giggle in surprise. "I love you Lindsay," he told her as he carried her back into their bedroom.

She rested her head on his chest, her words spoken on a contented sigh. "I love you too Danny."

l--

This is for A.Boleyn, who was feeling a little down at the (frankly hideous) lack of DL recently and _that_ interview at Talk CSI. If this isn't fluffy I don't know what is, so I hope it cheered you up a little Bo!

Now, lets see, first comes love, then comes... what was that second one again? You'll just have to wait and see!


End file.
